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The HEAT’s shift towards unconventional basketball has been met with many questions over the first month of the NBA season. Outside of defense, which has been addressed here, the biggest question mark that continues to surround the HEAT is rebounding. Can a team that rarely plays two traditional big men keep opponents off the boards? Can a championship team be built without a “go-to” rebounder? One would think that last season’s playoff run quelled any of those worries, but that hasn’t been the case.

Conventional wisdom suggests that a team contending for a championship needs to have someone who does the dirty work and cleans the glass. So far this season, the Lakers, Clippers, Grizzlies, Knicks, Spurs and Nets all have players in the top-20 in total rebounding percentage. No Thunder players make the leaderboard, but Kevin Durant represents them on the defensive rebounding percentage leaderboard, coming in at 16th in the NBA. The HEAT are absent from both leaderboards. That doesn’t surprise HEAT coach Erik Spoelstra.

“We’re not built that way. We don’t have a guy that we say, ‘OK, you just get us 15 rebounds,’” Spoelstra said. “We emphasize our defense and finishing the backline of our rotations to the block outs, and the rebound will be made by whoever is closest.”

That philosophy has worked well for the HEAT since Chris Bosh and LeBron James arrived. In the 2011 season the HEAT had the third best total rebound percentage and fourth best defensive rebounding percentage in the NBA. Last season the HEAT finished sixth and tenth in the respective categories. The HEAT have been successful without a traditional rebounder because of its approach and lineup versatility.

“The way we rotate on defense, sometimes it forces our perimeter guys to have to block out bigs. Our perimeter players are very important to the success of our rebounding,” Spoelstra said. “If they get over 20 rebounds, we usually win the rebounding game. But it all works together. Each guy has to sacrifice for each other, putting bodies on them and then we have to have multiple pursuits, even for balls that aren’t necessarily in your region.”

Over the last 20 years there has been a devaluation of offensive rebounds around the NBA. The league-average offensive rebounding percentage in 1992 was 32.9 percent. That was down to 28.9 percent in 2002 and 27.0 percent in 2012. Coaches would rather their teams get back on defense than fight for an offensive rebound.

The HEAT have followed this trend and have not finished with an above-average offensive rebounding percentage since 1998. That’s not to say the HEAT completely disregard the offensive glass, it’s just not a priority.

“We have rules to try to get our defense back and set. But, we also want our guys being aggressive. If they have an opportunity in the paint to get us another possession, we encourage that,” Spoelstra said.

So how are the HEAT doing this season? The HEAT currently rank 19th in the NBA in defensive rebounding percentage and 18th in total rebounding percentage. On the surface, it looks like the HEAT are in big trouble. But as we dig a little deeper, things don’t look so bad.

Take a look at this chart. The red section represents a defensive rebounding percentage above 73.7 percent, which is where the 10th ranked Bulls sit. The yellow section represents anything below 72.1 percent, which is where the 21st ranked Jazz are. In this case, red means good and yellow means not so good. The size and color of the dots represent days off before the game. The larger and darker the dot, the more days off before the game. For example, the HEAT had three days off before the Milwaukee game and zero days off before the Houston game.

(Click the the image to enlarge)

Holy outliers!

As you can see, the HEAT have nine games that would be in the top and middle thirds of the NBA pack and only four that would be in the bottom third of the league. Those two games swimming in the deep end of the yellow sea appear to have a lot in common.

The HEAT played the Denver Nuggets twice and twice the HEAT struggled to secure defensive rebounds. Denver is the best offensive rebounding team in league, but their success against the HEAT is still staggering.

What follows is cherry-picking at its finest, but bear with me. The two Denver games were both on the second night of back-to-backs, which has a significant negative effect on defensive rebounding, and they appear to be significant outliers. In fact, those two games are the two worst defensive rebounding performances with the current core. If we remove those Denver games for a second and focus on the other 11 games, what does the HEAT rebounding picture look like?

In the remaining 11 games, seven have been against above average offensive rebounding teams. Still, the HEAT have managed a defensive rebounding percentage of 75.4 percent. That mark would be the highest in the NBA. The HEAT’s total rebounding percentage would be 51.1 percent, the HEAT’s exact mark last season.

In the real world, the HEAT can’t just erase the Denver games. They happened. However, as those games become two of 50, 60 and eventually 82, their effect on the HEAT’s rebounding numbers will become less harsh.

The HEAT attack things differently than other teams, because they have to, but also because they can. Coach Spoelstra often talks about sacrifice when asked about rebounding; egos, he says, are left at the door.

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“We’re not built that way. We don’t have a guy that we say, ‘OK, you just get us 15 rebounds,’” Spoelstra said. “We emphasize our defense and finishing the backline of our rotations to the block outs, and the rebound will be made by whoever is closest.”

Man, I am afraid that the Miami Heat are gonna be in trouble for a long long time after reading this. That last statement "rebound will be made by whoever is close", tells you all you need to know: Eric Spolstra doesn't care much about rebounding, it is a nuisance, he is telling his players to do their minimum best, and not worry so much if that "whoever is close" happens to be Norris Cole trying to rebound against Blake Griffin, or the Gasols, or Chandler, or Verajao. Really?

This explains why the Heat became over night a team that cannot stop perimeter players (who take em off the dribble), but also a team that cannot box out, and CONSISTENTLY rebound. If the message is coming from your Coach, why would players even care so much? Maybe this explains why Lebron has been so upset lately. I believe trouble is brewing on the defensive side for the Miami Heat. One one hand you have Eric Spolstra arrogantly stuck with his "positionless" basket ball which is causing the team to not recognize the game play teams are employing to break us down defensively and abuse us on the rebounding side. Then on the other hand you have a player like LEBRON who finds this to be unaceptable, refuses to throw the white towel (as in the Clippers game), and wants to compete on all side of the game offense and DEFENSE!

Here is my suggestion: NBA teams are attacking the Heat's "Rope defense" by making multiple drive and kicks which lead to either open 3s (Dwad-Cole-Ray-Chalmers can't stay in front of their men), OR one of our small player is left under the rim fighting to get a rebound against the other team's 2nd Big(usually PFs. That is the game plan we've seen in the knicks-Clippers-Grizzles games. So what can the Miami heat do:

Instead of reacting to teams and their plays, what if Spo FORCED them to actually funnel the opponents to our advantage. The Spurs were good at that, they would force teams to the side and make em attack back door thinking it was open, only to have the Admiral or Duncan waiting. The heat can do this, with Bosh-LBJ-Joel waiting. This also shrinks the courts and hides our weakness with small ball.

Just an idea....spo.

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You completely misunderstood the statement made.....whether you did so intentionally or not I don't know, but obviously that's not what he means. The Heat with this small ball lineup emphasize rebounding more than most teams because they have to. They ask guards to block out forwards and perimeter players to crash the glass instead of leaking out in transition. If this team had a Howard or an Asik we wouldn't have to see Cole in the paint struggling to clear out someone with 100 lbs on him.

Everyone in the NBA plays an overload style of defense these days because zoning is allowed and it works. Its not like the Heat or Celtics or Bulls do anything unique.....they're just better at it than other people. Well the Celtics aren't anymore but that has more to do with lousy personnel decisions than anything else.

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You completely misunderstood the statement made.....whether you did so intentionally or not I don't know, but obviously that's not what he means. The Heat with this small ball lineup emphasize rebounding more than most teams because they have to. They ask guards to block out forwards and perimeter players to crash the glass instead of leaking out in transition. If this team had a Howard or an Asik we wouldn't have to see Cole in the paint struggling to clear out someone with 100 lbs on him.

Everyone in the NBA plays an overload style of defense these days because zoning is allowed and it works. Its not like the Heat or Celtics or Bulls do anything unique.....they're just better at it than other people. Well the Celtics aren't anymore but that has more to do with lousy personnel decisions than anything else.

I will give that i might have added a few things more, however the idea that Cole is struggling for rebounds with someone 100 lbs on him is a choice Spo made at the start of the season. And in term of perimiter defense, we're not getting that done either. Giving up on defensive (let alone offensive) rebounds, while being known in the nba for a team that doesn't protect the 3 much, is not habits Heat should develop. There are options Spo can employ, just means he'll have to be flexible with this small ball.

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Agent, I think you're misinterpreting Spo's comment. He wants everyone being aggressive when rebounding. So yea, HEAT perimeter players probably grab more boards than perimeter players on other team, but it doesn't matter. All that matters is getting the rebounds. And outside of the two Denver games, the HEAT have been really, really good at that.

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I will give that i might have added a few things more, however the idea that Cole is struggling for rebounds with someone 100 lbs on him is a choice Spo made at the start of the season. And in term of perimiter defense, we're not getting that done either. Giving up on defensive (let alone offensive) rebounds, while being known in the nba for a team that doesn't protect the 3 much, is not habits Heat should develop. There are options Spo can employ, just means he'll have to be flexible with this small ball.

But I hear what you are saying.

Giving up on offensive rebounds is a choice, one that most good defensive teams made a long time ago. Defensive rebounding is not a choice, and yes, Spoelstra made a conscious effort to get his perimeter players to box out and go after the ball to make up for deficiencies elsewhere. That decision was made long before positionless or small basketball became synonymous with the Heat. It was made when the Heat were playing big with guys that were worse rebounders than the small players that are starting today.

Perimeter defense is a whole 'nother issue which doesn't have much to do with the defensive or rebounding philosophies.

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“We’re not built that way. We don’t have a guy that we say, ‘OK, you just get us 15 rebounds,’” Spoelstra said. “We emphasize our defense and finishing the backline of our rotations to the block outs, and the rebound will be made by whoever is closest.”

Isn't the idea of boxing out included here? Sorry, is "block out" similar to "box out?" If it is, doesn't that show that Spo is also really concerned about rebounds because if they box out well, it will not be that difficult for them to grab rebounds.

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That's one way to interpret the chart, here is my interpretation: the white section represents somewhat the league average. Around the white spot is where the Heat have gotten their losses and almost-loses (close games) with the exception of BKN, I believe. Shouldn't that say that when they don't rebound better than league average, it is hard for them if not impossible to win games (they've gotten blown out three times, and the rest have been against inferior teams)? And shouldn't that mean that they should probably emphasize rebounds in order for them to have a better chance of winning, instead of blowing it off and say "we are not built that way?"

I understand that they wanna go the Boston Celtics route and rank dead last in offensive rebounds, but if you are gonna be dead last in offensive rebounds, you can't also expect not to play a lick of defense. Also, the point of not getting offensive rebounds, as was pointed out, was to get back on defense. Something the Heat are also not doing (see washington game). So what's the point?? The real reason that they're not getting offensive rebounds is not because they are getting back, is because our big man is 20 ft from the basket when the shot goes up.

Again, for the umpteenth time in the past 2+ years, the Heat are struggling to find their identity.

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That's one way to interpret the chart, here is my interpretation: the white section represents somewhat the league average. Around the white spot is where the Heat have gotten their losses and almost-loses (close games) with the exception of BKN, I believe. Shouldn't that say that when they don't rebound better than league average, it is hard for them if not impossible to win games (they've gotten blown out three times, and the rest have been against inferior teams)? And shouldn't that mean that they should probably emphasize rebounds in order for them to have a better chance of winning, instead of blowing it off and say "we are not built that way?"

I understand that they wanna go the Boston Celtics route and rank dead last in offensive rebounds, but if you are gonna be dead last in offensive rebounds, you can't also expect not to play a lick of defense. Also, the point of not getting offensive rebounds, as was pointed out, was to get back on defense. Something the Heat are also not doing (see washington game). So what's the point?? The real reason that they're not getting offensive rebounds is not because they are getting back, is because our big man is 20 ft from the basket when the shot goes up.

Again, for the umpteenth time in the past 2+ years, the Heat are struggling to find their identity.

I like your point. I also notice that sometimes. We are playing small ball, and in that strategy our big men are supposed to be Lebron, Bosh, and UD. So since the strategy is to open up driving lanes for Lebron or D-Wade, Bosh tries to take his defender away from the paint, and that leaves almost none of them near the rim to grab the rebound especially when Lebron takes outside or perimeter jumpers. The same also happens when D-Wade does that.

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Photo Credit: Matthew Stockman
The Miami HEAT face the Cleveland Cavaliers Friday night at Quicken Loans Arena. The HEAT defeated the Cavaliers 122-101 in their last meeting on March 19. Tip-off is set for 7:30 PM. Television coverage on FOX Sports Sun begins at 7:00 PM. You can also listen to the action live on 790 The Ticket.
1: While down for most of the second half, what led to Miami pulling within three against the Hawks on Wednesday?
Couper Moorhead: This is where we throw the statistics out the window for a bit and talk about just how much this HEAT team, even with just nine available players for a stretch of four games in five nights, just seems to keep on coming no matter the score. Even with 15 losses, Miami’s net rating (pace adjusted average scoring differential) is -2.6, meaning they rarely actually get blown out. It just seems this team is allergic to being down double digits, and with players like Tyler Johnson and Rodney McGruder going all out all the time they tend to make enough hustle plays and run enough in transition to keep the team in it even on nights like Wednesday when the offense isn’t quite flowing as they would want it to. That sort of grit doesn’t always translate to wins, but it says a lot about the collective character of this group.
Joe Beguiristain: Pure grit. Despite having just nine available players on the second night of a back-to-back, Miami made no excuses and kept grinding. While Tyler Johnson had a career-night, both Goran Dragić and Rodney McGruder were also instrumental in the comeback bid. Dragić fought through the fatigue and did all he could in the fourth quarter, while McGruder never stopped hustling on both ends.
In short, the HEAT showed a lot of resolve to climb back and cut the deficit to single-digits a few times in the fourth. Although they ultimately fell short, you have to commend them for never giving up. That persistent mentality all starts at the top with Coach Spo, who always says that his team has enough to compete regardless of the circumstances. It remains to be seen how Miami will fare on a tough back-to-back set against the Cavaliers and Bulls, but you can rest assured that the HEAT will give it their all from beginning to end.
2: How have the Cavaliers started their season as defending champs?
Couper: As you would expect the defending champs to do. Cleveland is 15-5 with an elite offense and an overall defensive rating that, hovering around league average, probably doesn’t quite tell the full story since Cleveland has so often been up early. The Cavs recently went on a three-game losing streak, with two coming on the road, against the Bucks, Clippers and Bulls, but this is one of those teams where the true story of their season will be told after April 15. It’s somewhat similar to the 2014 Miami HEAT, in that respect, as that team had just come off three-straight trips to the Finals, back-to-back titles and even a 27-game winning streak – there just wasn’t much left to prove in the regular season for a veteran group. So, they took a business-like approach to the regular season, won their games, and rounded into shape for the playoffs.
Joe: Outside of a three-game losing streak last week, Cleveland has started the season pretty well. In fact, the Cavaliers are the best three-point shooting team in the league, which should come as no surprise given all the weapons they have. Here’s a crazy stat: Cleveland has four regular rotation players who shoot well over 40 percent from downtown. Of course, a lot of that has to do with LeBron James’ ability to consistently find the open man when opposing teams send a double team his way. While that’s nothing new, James is averaging a career-high 9.1 assists per game this season. Otherwise, Kyrie Irving has been superb on the offensive end, especially from mid-range.
Things haven’t been as sharp for the Cavaliers on the defensive side of things, as they rank below league average in efficiency. That said, this is a team that can turn it on at a moment’s notice.
3: How can Miami defend LeBron James and is narrowing it down to that one matchup even the right way to think about the Cavaliers anymore?
Couper: Similar to the situation with Carmelo Anthony and the Knicks or Paul Millsap and the Hawks, the HEAT are short a number of their best wing defenders right now. McGruder and Johnson will do the best they can, but sometimes you’re just at a size disadvantage and smart, veteran players know how to take advantage of that. And with James you have the added threat of his passing so if Miami elects to try and double him in the post when he has a smaller defender on him, James will immediately find the open space on the floor. Nobody in the league has a particularly good answer for that right now, so Miami may just have to live with the results in one-on-one defense and stay disciplined in their help so as not to allow a barrage of open threes.
Joe: Like I stated in my previous response, Cleveland has so many weapons that you can’t just solely focus in on James. If it’s not Irving torching you from distance, it’s Kevin Love, who is shooting a career-best 42.2 percent from beyond the arc. Let’s also not forget the forward’s 34-point first quarter against the Trail Blazers on November 23.
As such, I believe Miami should try and go at James one-on-one rather than double team him. Regardless of how much size McGruder has given up, he has made things tough on every assignment thus far. It’ll be difficult either way, but the HEAT have the mental fortitude and toughness needed to compete at a high level on Friday night.

Highlights:
March 19-Cavaliers at HEAT
December 5-Cavaliers at HEAT
Game Notes:
The HEAT are 7-15, while the Cavaliers are 15-5.
Miami has won 14 of its last 17 against Cleveland.
Goran Dragić leads the HEAT in points (18.0) and assists (6.5) per game.
Kyrie Irving leads the Cavaliers in scoring at 24.6 points per contest.
Efficiencies (Rank):
HEAT Offense: 100.4 (24)
HEAT Defense: 103.0 (14)
Cavaliers Offense: 111.0 (3)
Cavaliers Defense: 105.2 (19)

Photo Credit: Scott Cunningham
The Miami HEAT fell to the Atlanta Hawks 103-95 Wednesday night at Philips Arena. Tyler Johnson led the way for the HEAT with 27 points. Click here for the full recap on HEAT.com.

Photo Credit: Kevin C. Cox
The Miami HEAT face the Atlanta Hawks Wednesday night at Philips Arena. The HEAT fell to the Hawks 93-90 in their last meeting on November 15. Tip-off is set for 7:30 PM. Television coverage on FOX Sports Sun begins at 7:00 PM. You can also listen to the action live on 790 The Ticket.
1: What led to Miami’s home loss to the Knicks and what will Miami need to clean up headed to Atlanta?
Couper Moorhead: Erik Spoelstra and Goran Dragic talked about it after the game for a reason – the HEAT allowed 18 offensive rebounds and 31 second-chance points. Considering how New York struggled early in this game to find a good offensive rhythm, and was ice-cold from three, all those second opportunities kept them in the game so that by the time Carmelo Anthony went off in the second half, it led to the Knicks taking control of the game. Miami is obviously depleted right now with only nine available players Tuesday night and for the rest of the week, but they can only give their defense a chance to give them a win by finishing their defensive possessions.
Joe Beguiristain: Like Coup said above, the HEAT just gave the Knicks too many second-chance opportunities. In particular, Joakim Noah and Kyle O’Quinn racked up offensive boards to give New York life. It was really disappointing because there were a number of instances where Miami did everything it needed for a stop outside of grabbing the defensive board.
While Carmelo Anthony caught fire in the second half, he started off just 5-of-12 thanks in large part to Rodney McGruder. Kristaps Porzingis, meanwhile, was held in check for a majority of the night, as he shot just 6-of-15 on the evening. If Miami would have done the little things right, perhaps there would have been a different outcome to the game. Moving forward, the HEAT have to secure the defensive rebound after the initial stop.
2: What did we learn about the matchup with the new-look Hawks in the first meeting this season?
Couper: Unlike the Knicks game, the first game with Atlanta was actually one that Miami dominated on the glass, largely because Hassan Whiteside couldn’t be contained. Dwight Howard left the game with an injury during the second half, but he and Whiteside were enjoying a healthy battle before that. Once Howard went out, and any time he was on the bench, there was nobody on Atlanta’s roster who could consistently keep Whiteside away from the rim. That, for Wednesday night, should be very encouraging.
Also, Kyle Korver only got four shots on in that game as Spoelstra, as per usual, made sure his defenders always knew where he was.
Joe: Since Coup already mentioned Whiteside’s dominance against the Hawks the last time out, I’ll discuss two other guys who will be instrumental if Miami wants to come away with the win. In that last matchup against Atlanta, both McGruder and Tyler Johnson made some big plays down the stretch to narrow the gap. While both guys received over 30 minutes of playing time in that game, they will need to do more with just nine guys available this time around.
Otherwise, we learned that Tim Hardaway Jr. seems to be a valuable rotation player for the Hawks. In fact, the 24-year-old has one of the highest net ratings on the team and is shooting a career-high 46.8 percent from the field. There’s a good chance we’ll see Johnson matched-up with Hardaway Jr. at certain points throughout the game.
3: What aspect of Atlanta’s current losing streak could work in Miami’s favor Wednesday night?
Couper: The Hawks have lost 10 of their last 11 games, but there’s some context to consider there. Seven of those losses were on the road, including a five-point loss to the Warriors on the second night of a back-to-back, and three of those games did not include Paul Millsap (the Hawks lost by 30 or more in two of his absences). So there was some bad injury luck mixed in there with a tough spot in the schedule, though Millsap is now back in the lineup. That said, Atlanta’s defensive rating during those 11 games was a 109.3, so if there continues to be slippage on that end then Miami and especially Dragic could find an advantage by staying in attack mode – especially if the team can keep him playing downhill with solid screens, pace and the proper spacing.
Joe: The Hawks have surprisingly dropped seven straight, as injuries and poor play all-around have plagued the team. Here are some startling numbers: Atlanta is ranked last in offensive efficiency (90.2) and 25th in defensive efficiency (109.6) over its seven-game skid. That just doesn’t sound like the Mike Budenholzer led teams we’ve seen over the past few seasons.
With the Hawks struggling, the HEAT should have some success on both ends of the floor. The two-man game between Goran Dragić and Whiteside has been pretty deadly of late, so perhaps that can continue in Atlanta. That said, you never know what to expect in the NBA. In all, it should be an intriguing matchup between two teams starving for a victory.

Photo Credit: Issac Baldizon
The Miami HEAT fell to the New York Knicks 114-103 Tuesday night at AmericanAirlines Arena. Goran Dragić led the way for the HEAT with 29 points. Click here for the full recap on HEAT.com.

Photo Credit: Oscar Baldizon
The Miami HEAT host the New York Knicks Tuesday night at AmericanAirlines Arena. Get your tickets now! The HEAT defeated the Knicks 98-81 in their last meeting on February 28. Tip-off is set for 7:30 PM. Television coverage on FOX Sports Sun begins at 7:00 PM. You can also listen to the action live on 790 The Ticket.
1: Despite the end result, did Miami continue any positive trends from the three-game road trip as they took on Portland?
Couper Moorhead: Until the road trip and long minutes appeared to take a toll of the team down the stretch, Miami’s offense had continued to be full of energy and movement as Goran Dragic led the way through drive after drive after drive into the paint. And when Dragic didn’t have the ball in his hands, it was Josh McRoberts running the point for stretches or Hassan Whiteside finding deep position in the paint (where he was incredibly efficient) or Wayne Ellington running off screens. The offense wasn’t perfect, but it kept things moving and all the little things the HEAT have added to their scoring diet in the past week should help them build a more complete approach as players return from injury.
The defense, however, was also significantly stronger against Portland. That was partially due to Utah being red-hot from the perimeter, but the HEAT guards did very well chasing Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum around screens so they wouldn’t have enough air space for a comfortable jumper. A lot of that came from Rodney McGruder, who is proving himself to be a most dependable defensive option.
Joe Beguiristain: While Miami ultimately fell short in Portland, the team did continue to show improvement on both sides of the ball. Perhaps most impressive was how the HEAT limited Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum to a combined 13-of-37 shooting from the field. In particular, Rodney McGruder, Tyler Johnson and Goran Dragić did a great job on both guys for a majority of the contest. As a whole, Miami held Portland to just 40.4 percent shooting.
On the flip side of the ball, the two-man game between Dragić and Hassan Whiteside continued to be extremely effective. The Slovenian attacked the basket and knocked down jumpers thanks to good screens from Whiteside, while the big fella did a little bit of everything against Portland’s bigs. In short, both guys emptied the tank and gave it all they had in a valiant effort against the Trail Blazers.

2: How has New York’s offseason moves affected their team so far?
Couper: After adding Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah in the offseason, the Knicks are scoring over 108 points per 100 possessions with either of them on the floor and with another acquisition in Courtney Lee shooting well over 40 percent from three they’ve been an above-average offense overall so far. But additions can also come from internal development as Kristaps Porzingis has entered this season as a significantly improved offensive player, scoring 20 points per game on about the same number of possessions he used during his rookie season when he averaged 14. This is as dynamic an offense as the Knicks have had since their playoff runs a few seasons ago. They’re also 11-9 based on a defense that currently ranks below average, but that doesn’t take away from this being one of the tougher teams to gameplan for in the league these days.
Joe: The Knicks have improved on the offensive end thus far thanks to the additions of Derrick Rose, Courtney Lee, and Brandon Jennings. While Jennings provides a spark off the bench for New York, both Rose and Lee have been producing well in the staring lineup. In the case of Rose, the 28-year-old is averaging 19.3 points, 4.9 assists and 4.3 rebounds per game on 46.8 percent shooting in his last ten. He’s also been getting to the free throw line at a higher rate during that time frame. We all know what Rose is capable of when healthy, and he seems to be in a good place right now. Thanks in part to the playmaking point guard, the Knicks have won three straight and are two games over .500 for the first time this season.
3: How do you think Miami will defensively handle New York’s leading scorers in Carmelo Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis?
Couper: To answer this we must first discuss Miami’s injury situation. James Johnson, Justise Winslow and Dion Waiters have all been ruled out for the game. Josh Richardson and Luke Babbitt are both doubtful. So Miami will be shorthanded in general but could also be missing a chunk of its non-center size, meaning anyone other than Derrick Williams could potentially be giving up both inches and pounds to the 6-foot-8 Anthony. Miami still has a ton of gritty defenders, but if Anthony has a size advantage in the post it will take a disciplined array of help defenders to keep him away from the rim.
As for Porzingis, you could see some cross-matching between him and Whiteside. Miami could want Whiteside to get Porzingis switched on to him so Whiteside can get good position in the post, but by the same token asking Whiteside to chase the Knicks’ high-volume shooter feet beyond the three-point line is quite the task for a full game. The guess would be that Whiteside starts the game defending Noah or Kyle O’Quinn, depending on who is in the lineup, and then we see the Whiteside-Porzingis matchup later in the game when New York goes small with Anthony at the four spot.
Joe: As Coup mentioned above, things will be tough without James Johnson, Justise Winslow or Dion Waiters. Last season, we were treated to great matchups between Winslow and Carmelo Anthony, but unfortunately that won’t be the case this time around. Even though McGruder is giving up a bunch of size, perhaps we’ll see him defending Anthony on the perimeter at certain points in the game. Otherwise, we could see Derrick Williams or Josh McRoberts on Anthony from time to time.
Kristaps Porzingis, meanwhile, has really taken a leap forward in his sophomore season. The 21-year-old has upped his production in nearly every facet, with the biggest jumps coming in points per game and field goal percentage. McRoberts will likely start on the talented big unless Miami wants to cross-match like Coup stated above. Regardless of who guards Porzingis, they will have to give him no space on the perimeter since nearly 43 percent of his shots come off catch-and-shoot opportunities. Again, it’ll be tough, but we’ll see how it all pans out on Tuesday night.

Highlights:
February 28-HEAT at Knicks
January 6-Knicks at HEAT
Game Notes:
The HEAT have won two of three and are 7-13.
The Knicks have won three straight and stand at 11-9.
Hassan Whiteside leads Miami in points (17.8), rebounds (14.9) and blocks (2.6) per game.
Carmelo Anthony leads New York in scoring at 22.5 points per contest.
Efficiencies (Rank):
HEAT Offense: 100.2 (24)
HEAT Defense: 102.1 (11)
Knicks Offense: 104.4 (13)
Knicks Defense: 107.2 (27)